SnapRetail Launches Deals Program for Small Retailers

Posted on February 14, 2012 by HFN Staff

PITTSBURGH-Web marketing company SnapRetail has launched a deals program where it includes local retailers on product deals by sourcing products nationally, then helps retailers tap the relationships they have with their customers to sell locally using a store pick-up model.

Called SnapFinds, the transaction-based platform allows local retailers to sell daily offers online using their own email lists, and Facebook and Twitter connections. With about two to three campaigns planned a month -- scheduled around such events as Easter, Mother's Day, July 4th, summer picnics and August weddings -- and price points averaging between $25 to $75, the offers are presented to the consumer as coming from the local retailer, not a third party. Once a purchase is made, the product is shipped to the store free of charge for pick up, increasing store traffic for the retailer.

"While there has been an explosion in demand for daily deals from consumers in the past, SnapRetail has moved in the opposite direction by building our model on relationships and loyalty in today's crowded marketplace," said Ted Teele, CEO of SnapRetail. "We realized that the small local retailers we work with across the nation were not being served well. SnapFinds offers new nationally sourced products rather than services, and works with local retailers to bring the power of each sale into local communities. It is a winning model for consumers, retailers and vendors alike and a bridge for many small retailers who have not moved to selling products online."

The program was tested for the past holiday season with a limited group of retailers and products from 11 vendors such as Lindsay Phillips and Midwest CBK. SnapRetail said the launch reached hundreds of thousands of consumers who learned about the program from local retailers via email, Facebook, Twitter and word of mouth; more than 70 percent of the participating retailers sold items in the program; and many stores saw increased traffic. Many were in small towns where daily deals like Groupon do not have a presence, the company said.

"Participating in SnapFinds was a no-brainer," said store owner Becky Vickery of La Ti Da, a gift retailer that took part in the holiday deals program. "Our December sales increased 30 percent over last year, and we believe it was, in large part, driven by SnapFinds."